Hospitality & food
Direct-booking websites for short-term rentals
For short-term rentals (Alojamento Local), we build a direct-booking website with calendars synced to Airbnb and Booking.com, online payments and an AI assistant that answers guests in several languages. Guests who already know you book with you, with no platform commission. You run everything from one calendar, even across several properties.
Typical problems
- Every platform booking pays commission, even when the guest has stayed before
- Juggling calendars on several platforms by hand leads to double bookings
- Guests ask the same questions about keys, times and parking, often in the middle of the night
- Without a website of your own, people searching for your rental by name only find it on the platforms
Suggested bundle
One calendar, many channels
At the heart of the system is one calendar for all your properties. Bookings from the website, Airbnb and Booking.com sit in the same place, with the guest's name, party size and payment status. Block dates for your own use or for repairs in one click, and they close on every channel.
What guests find
- Photos, amenities and house rules in Portuguese, English and other languages
- Seasonal rates, minimum stays and discounts for longer stays
- Payment by card, MB WAY, Multibanco, Apple Pay or Google Pay, in full or with a deposit
- Instant confirmation and arrival instructions sent a few days ahead
- An assistant that answers at any hour, from your own instructions
Guests who come back
People who have already stayed with you are the most likely to book direct. After their stay, the system can send a thank-you with a code for their next booking on your website, and invite a review. Over time, a share of your bookings stops going through the platforms.
Try our holiday rental demo to follow a booking from start to finish, or read more about booking systems. For hotels with a front desk and several room types, see the page on hotels and guesthouses.
Frequently asked questions
How do I avoid double bookings between the website and the platforms?
The website calendar exchanges booked dates with Airbnb and Booking.com through calendar links (iCal). That exchange is not instant, so we set rules such as a gap between stays and a minimum notice period to lower the risk. If you use a channel manager, the connection runs through it instead and updates faster.
Can the website collect the tourist tax?
Yes. The tax follows your municipality's rules, such as the nightly rate, exempt ages and the cap on nights, and shows on the booking apart from the cost of the stay, so guests can see what they are paying for. If the rules change, you update them in the dashboard.
Does the AI assistant answer guests on the host's behalf?
It answers from your house guide, such as the key-box code, check-out time or the nearest restaurant, in the guest's own language. It always says it is an AI assistant and forwards anything that needs a person to you.
I only have one flat. Is a website of my own worth it?
Often, yes. A simple site with direct bookings gives you somewhere to send returning guests and anyone who looks you up by name. We start with the essentials and add features as you take on more properties.
What is the price?
It depends on the number of properties, the languages and the connections you need, so every project is quoted by hand. Tell us how many rentals you have and where you list them today. Request a quote
Shall we talk about your project?
Tell us what you have in mind and what you want to achieve.